A Little Flower
by SweetCarnation
Summary: And knowing how her father would react, the young Nakamori girl chose to not say anything about how Kid knew of her after-school activities or even what she studied during the many evenings her only parent was away. Or tell him about the carnations she was given by the white-clad man as well as the cards that came with them every single time.


Trying to understand my style…right. And maybe I'll make 100 one-shots.  
**Disclaimer: **Gosho Aoyoma is a boy. I am a girl. Therefore, I am not Gosho Aoyama and do not own any of the Detective Conan/Magic Kaito characters, I only play with them.  
Warning: heavy descriptions! :P

Profitez de l'histoire, mes chéris

**A Little Flower**

"I'm cold."

He wrapped his cape around her lithe form tighter, bundling her small body up to prevent any heat from leaking out from her skin. He brought her closer to him, her back fully pressed to his chest, messy dark brown hair brushing against his neck while his chin rested atop of her head, his nostrils taking in the sweet scent of lilies.

"Better?"

She didn't answer, only snuggled up to him, desperately craving some warm clothes of any kind. The only comfort she got was Kid's jacket and his cape around her wet form. Trying to stay warm, Aoko brought her knees underneath her, but after around ten minutes, her bent knees stopped the blood from irrigating her feet, making them icy cold. To help her, Kid gave up his comfy shoes and dressed her dainty feet in the white leather footwear.

"Don't fall asleep," he berated the frozen girl, his warms wrapping themselves around her like a vice and nudging her head with his chin to make her open her eyes. He knew that if she fell asleep, she wouldn't be able to wake up again. And that mere thought scared him so much even his Poker Face was crumbling.

"Aoko, c'mon. Look here," tried Kaitou Kid. She had to stay focused on something – anything – or else she'd fall easily into Morpheus's arms. Seeing his words held no effect, he shifted the girl in his hold, bringing her right side to rest against his torso, head cradled gently on his left shoulder and the legs covered snuggly by his cape were held in his right arm, his hand sometimes going up and down to bring some warmth back.

"Don't hold me like that, you pervert," mumbled the girl sickly. Even though she was barely holding on to consciousness, she could still feel stupid Kid's hand going down her leg, and frankly, that made shivers crawl up her spine while her whole body shuddered in dislike – or maybe it was because she felt chilled to the bone…

Kid smiled a little, relieved Aoko wasn't giving up. After all, she did fall from the boat into frigid waters, and if he wasn't always looking out of her, who knew how long it would have taken the Inspector or the crew to realize she fell overboard.

She sneezed and quivered in his hold, and his mood darkened. If Aoko got ill because he took too damn long to bring his sorry ass and some warm blankets over, the Inspector was sure he'd get a hard whooping the next heist.

"Why…did you help?" came her faint, hesitant voice, trying to keep as much energy to stay awake as possible, looking more tired than her usual enthusiastic and lively state. She proceeded to curl up toward the nearest source of heat – namely his body – and closed her eyes, still aware of the motors working at full throttle and the waves crashing against the hull, while her father shouted incomprehensible words, her mind fogging and hazy.

But soon, she was jerked to reality when the jerk holding her moved around, trying to bring another blanket over her dainty body. She felt his pectorals and the deltoids of his shoulders flex to reach out for the fabric, finally managing to grasp it and cover her. Afterwards, he took off his gloves and clothed her hands with them, the heat seeping blissfully into her fingers.

Moments passed, the salty humid air no longer hitting the ocean and creating monstrous waves. Dawn's awakening brought to life pink and orange layers of skies, the sun peeking from the horizon and his bright tangerine rays sticking from the luminous sphere. The morose puffs of gray serving as clouds, which threatened to flood the ocean by crying all of their tears, left place to innocent-looking white cotton candies, floating aimlessly high on the soft pink and tangerine canvas. On the dormant land of water, the boat navigated swiftly, carrying its passengers back to dry land.

On the back of the motorboat, the two young teens, still cradled in each other's arms, were asleep and dead to the world around them, even to the fuming Inspector, glad to have recovered his precious daughter, but hating the proximity she had to Kaitou Kid. After all, he _was_ a thief, breaking all the laws concerning private property and even taunting the epitome of order, the police force, a feat not everyone could brag about.

Back to the subject, Inspector Nakamori had a hard time believing his eyes when he first sighted Kaitou Kid holding his daughter tightly and sheltering her from the waves menacing to devour them both without remorse. It took a while for his brain to catch up, but as soon as he recovered, Nakamori Ginzo was aware of a white-clad thief who gave jacket, cape and shoes for the sake of his daughter and who was resting on the back of the motorboat, not letting go of Aoko for a heartbeat. For saving the only left member of his family, the middle-aged man was grateful, but still, as soon as they were back home and Aoko was nowhere near hypothermia, the Inspector wouldn't let the slippery thief out of his sight, intending with every fiber of his being to cuff the hands that performed so many tricks and illusion on his person and the Taskforce once and for all.

…

Aoko awoke to the smell of salt tingling her nose and the touch of warm breath fanning over her face. She opened her eyes slowly, giving them the necessary time to adjust to the excess of light flooding them, and her blue orbs were met with the angular shape of Kid's strong jaw. Under normal circumstances, her body would have acted on its own and pushed herself away from the thief before her brain could comprehend what was really happening, but these were unusual circumstances and her body was stiff and sore from the rest she just left behind, leaving her brain to deal with this proximity to, as begrudgingly as she admitted it, a handsome young man. And being a brain controlling a figure full of feminine hormones, it decided that the way to react to this was send all the blood rushing through the cheeks – blushing.

And so, blush Aoko did.

Aware of the loud thumping of her heart in her ribcage, she craned her neck to try and get a better look around the motorboat's passengers, only noting the form of her father, clad in a flashy yellow raincoat, sprawled out on the floor and snoring quite loudly and the navigator, looking towards the horizon, where some forms started standing out. Buildings.

And at the same moment she started shifting to activate the blood flow in her extremities, Kid stirred.

The unruly brown-haired girl stilled all of her movements as her savior moved a bit and stretched out his arms and legs as best as he could, without discomforting Aoko. A yawn tore at his mouth, which he quickly covered with his gloveless hand, and rubbing the eye that wasn't hidden by his trademark monocle, he greeted her with a small smile and a, "Good morning, slept well?"

Aoko stared in his blue eyes, flushing hard and breathing fast. She nodded meekly, unlike her usual energetic and loud self, and moved away as far as she could when her body was entangled in his cape, before she blurted out the most stupid things of her life. Besides, she felt annoyed at herself, brain and wits reduced to mush around the thief even though she was the daughter of the fiery Inspector Nakamori, who transmitted his desire to capture Kaitou Kid to his little girl at a young age.

"I–I'm fine, thank you," she responded politely, looking away from him. One second later, she was engulfed in her father's arms, who shouted with joy and relief at his daughter's well-being, dramatic tears falling out of his red-rimmed eyes. Out of the corner of her eye, she could see Kaitou Kid's faint smile before he got up, clearing his throat to gain their attention.

"As much as this little family reunion touches me, I'm afraid I must take my leave. Please get well, young lady," he delivered, sincerity clearly lacing his voice when he spoke the last sentence directed to Aoko. And as soon as Inspector Nakamori got up to stop Kid, the magician thief disappeared as a red rose was dropped on Aoko's laps with a small card and few words.

_Do be careful and please don't worry me like that anymore. I don't think my poor heart could bear it,_

_Kaito Kid_

_(sad doodle)_

…

Around a week after Aoko's rescue, Kaitou Kid resumed his thievery, but every member of the Kid-Taskforce agreed that it was a hilarious sight to see the usually composed and experienced thief stumble over colored beads or be unable to fly because his cape and shoes were still in Aoko's possession, the clothes bearing Kid's trademark card-gun, smoke bombs and flashy hang-glider that drove fangirls crazy in their illusions the thief would one day take them on a flight in the moonlight.(How cheesy and hopeless…)

The young girl, after laughter subsided from the party room where every police officer of the Ekoda Department rolled over and over the security cameras where Kid attempted –and failed royally – to steal a gem without any of his usual gadgets, felt pity for her father's opponent and decided to be lenient to him,_ just_ this once. _Because he saved me, I'll give him his things back and I won't owe him anymore, _was the idea hidden behind her actions.

As such, she asked her father to protect the next target, a huge, 5-carat green emerald going by the name, 'Beryl Emerald'.

…

_Fangirls should buy themselves another brain,_ thought Aoko boredly. As she did not support the 'charming' gentleman thief, she was found extremely easily in the huge crowd composed of ninety-nine percent of fangirls and one percent of policemen and whatnots surrounding the buildings where the heists were supposed to happen, according to Kid's manifestos.

Aoko always wore an Anti-Kid carboard which made her recognizable for anyone who listened to the reports made by the journalist the day after Kid's newest appearance and as such, the Anti-Kid lone supporter found herself under the stare of many weird, overbearing fans until their idol arose from the building, saluted his faithful admirers, threw some cheeky comments there and there with either red or white carnations for Aoko, cast a few taunts about the Ekoda police having to add this time on their Times-We-Failed-To-Catch-Kaitou-Kid list and jumped over, flying into the distance, leaving a mass of crazy fangirls shouting at the top of their lungs their devotion and love for the ingenious young man and the Kid-Taskforce cursing him to the depths of the universe.

Seeing the wild reaction of the horde of fans, Aoko decided that they desperately needed another brain to open their eyes and stop idolizing a man who broke several laws of the Civil Code. Which brought us to her current predicament, where Aoko thought; _Fangirls should buy themselves another brain._

As for Aoko, she was still waiting with the many officers her father appointed to secure the hall where the jewel would be kept, plain in sight. The room was enormous, to say the least, and if you lifted your gaze towards the ceiling, ten floors with metallic balustrade of Victorian style would flow under your eyes. Immense antique tapestries of rich red velvet and subtle hues of dark yellow, brown and black mingled together into a woven flowery pattern, the heavy tissues draped over the walls like a waterfall falling from the ceiling. The latter was luxurious, motives finely engraved on the thin glass, leaving to the moonlight the task of projecting the same imprint on the lacquered mahogany, dark cherry wooded floor.

Unlike other scenes where a heist would be held, this place gave off a feeling of sumptuous luxury and warmth, where your breath would catch in your throat in admiration for the exquisite ornaments affixed on the rare bare walls, the small details of the metallic structures and the gold streams flowing between the junctions of the wood lames.

And lucky Aoko could spend the whole night here, in a room fit for the worthiest of the Kings or Queens, a room that would send even the art-centered being of Louis-Soleil in a green, deep-rooted jealousy no one would be able to cure.

The only reason being to give _Kaitou frigging Kid his gadgets back…_

Now I see a big problem, because I would've been gaga about the moment I began to describe this place, but seeing as I am not the protagonist, I can't go and teleport myself in such a place, which would be filled with my drool in about half a second.

You can rage, now.

Done?

Good.

Lucky Aoko was aware that this place meant that another gem would probably be added to the Phantom Thief's list of stolen treasures, but as was mentioned way back, she decided that being lenient o_nce in a lifetime_ wouldn't mean the end of the world, although it was making her father become slowly, but surely, mad at his daughter's scolding and her telling him in the firmest voice ever to not intervene at all, even if Kid was to flee.

It was a weird feeling for the Inspector, like he was given a huge dose of caffeine and yet, his hands and legs were buried deep in concrete. After chasing Kaitou Kid for twenty years or so straight and resuming the chase when he came back, the way adrenaline would rush through his body's cells changed. During the first few times, the Inspector would feel his heart pumping wildly and his hands used to shake so badly he wasn't even able to hold a pair of handcuffs without slipping out of his sweaty fingers. But failure after failure, he grew accommodated to Kid's method, and slowly, he began controlling his nerves and the excitement building up in him at the thought of having another occasion to prove the world he was able to arrest the most wanted criminal of the history of thieves in Japan. And without him being aware of the years flying by, Kid finally vanished, never to make another shout-out to the world until the eighth anniversary of his disappearance.

And now, Ginzo Nakamori's _own_ daughter refused him the right to carry on the business of dog-piling on Kid to arrest him.

Life wasn't fair.

Though as much as this wasted occasion disappointed him and the usual members of the Kid-Taskforce, there was an idea bothering Inspector Nakamori's mind, something concerning his precious daughter.

That stupid heist!

The way it was, the Inspector was the one to stay on the field until late in the morning of the following day while his daughter dutifully stayed home, away from potential dangers and where she could focus on her studies, or somewhere outside and away from the buildings involved by Kid's manifesto. And as much as he hated to stay over at the office to write those blasted reports about the failure of the previous night, he knew Aoko understood his job, although he could still feel the sadness radiating from her. But bless the skies; at least she had her faithful childhood and magician friend, Kaito. And this subject brought another feeling up: jealousy.

Nakamori Ginzo knew he hardly spent time with his daughter during the week preceding and following a heist, always preparing the rooms, booby-trapping them, or instructing the Kid-Taskforce, but it always stung a little part of his fatherly pride when he was aware that the one to bring a smile to Aoko's lips was more often Kaito than he himself. Alas, such was the fate of a police officer dedicating his whole career for the day he'll – hopefully – catch the most elusive thief to have ever lived and walked on this Earth.

Back to the subject of the heist, there was that feeling of concern and worry never leaving the Inspector. In a giant room with no cameras – the master of the place deciding they were would ruin the beauty and the charm of the fragile Beryl Emerald – Aoko would be waiting for Kid to give him those blasted inventions of his, and as tough as she might have been, the Inspector was regretful to admit that she'd be defenseless if Kid ever tried anything – like stealing her away, or worse, stealing her heart like he did all those mindless, crazy fangirls shouting their love until their voices were hoarse and the walls of their throat so ablaze nothing would quench the fire burning.

And that thought alone was enough to send the Inspector into frenzy.

But every officer of the whole city of Ekoda was aware that should you try anything with Nakamori Aoko, the proud inheritant of the infamously scary Nakamori temper, a mop would already have inflicted much damage and bruises would pop out in violet, bluish spots not too pretty to stare at, swelling violently and horrifyingly fast.

If only the Inspector remembered that teensy detail, then every person wouldn't have to suffer the paranoia of an overreacting man of forty-one worrying about his more than capable daughter.

While Nakamori Ginzo fretted, pacing from left to right, up and down the stairs, creating a movement which would burn a hole through your eyes so fast it was, other policemen busied themselves by checking the cameras, retaining the howling crowd the best they could, and time evaporated into nothingness, the huge televisions outside displaying as much info on the heist as possible as well as the countdown until announced time.

And at the second every officer left the huge chamber and the Beryl Emerald in Aoko's hands, all lights died.

The heist had begun.

Crowds howled in joy, policemen tensed up in awaiting Kid's usual taunts and merry laugh, and Aoko sat boredly on the floor, just beside the gray pedestal presenting a gem worth millions for all who cared enough.

Silence was present and brought a heavy atmosphere around. People could hear, _feel_, their heart pounding loudly, strongly in their ears, a faint hissing sound in the back barely brushing the organ sensible to sounds. Some attributed that faint whiz to the wind, just having recently picked up, and others dismissed it as nothing more than their imagination gallivanting.

But everyone was wrong.

It proved, later, that the whistling sound came from a small gas-emitting bead, knocking out most policemen in the building and some of Kid's faithful supporters who dared to stay near the door in hope of catching a glimpse of their idol. As soon as people started falling, the crowds withdrew from the barrier of K.O.-ed officers and roared loudly, cheering for the man who defied the authority of even Interpol agents.

On the inside, everything seemed peaceful. Far away from the noisy fans, Aoko stared at the gem sitting in the palms of her hands, shining brightly even in the darkness. She played with the jewel for a while, turning it around and around to observe its many facets and the strings of deflected moonlight creating bright green spots on the cold lacquered floor, but quickly grew bored of the piece of valuable emerald and deposited it back on its pedestal.

Soon, Aoko began wishing she prepared more for the heist, no actually aware that someone was to relieve her of her boredom in 3– 2– 1–

"Hello!"

She was startled, her body jumping up into a standing position while her mind tried to comprehend what was actually happening. Soon, Aoko understood that her interlocutor was only Kid, dangling upside down à la Spiderman from the ceiling, which was supposed to be nearly 20 meters over her head. On his angular visage sat an enormous face-splitting grin and one of his gloveless hand came up – or was it down in this case? – to secure the monocle on his eye. It seemed, though, that his hat magically stayed in place. Maybe another trick of his…

"Good evening, Miss Aoko! You seem to be doing better than last time I saw you!" continued the thief enthusiastically, seemingly unaware of his position as an internationally known criminal and her post as Inspector Nakamori's daughter. Though he continually reminded himself of this rift between his thief-persona and his romantic interest, it still didn't deter the optimistic thief from teasing Aoko a little.

The bushy haired girl frowned slightly at Kid's informality, but brushed it at the back of her mind. Being the daughter of the ever-straightforward Nakamori Ginzo and childhood friend of the perverted Kuroba Kaito, Aoko dealt with people who didn't bother with politeness and formalities, thinking of these two aspects as unnecessary burdens to a conversation meaning to go somewhere. It felt weird, the first few times her father's clients or Aunt Chikage (Kaito's mother) called her by her last name, but time was nice to her, as she quickly grew accustomed to this kind of straightforwardness coming from important people.

But back at the situation, Aoko had no wish to stay over with a polite smile that would tire the muscles of her face and give her the universe's most sore cheeks the next day. She wanted to give Kid his clothes back, thank him for that time when he saved her, and go on with her life without his annoying presence bothering her or her father.

Aaand unfortunately for her, Kaitou Kid had other plans.

"Why are you here? Usually, you're at home studying for, what is it you do again, quadratic functions?" his voice came up at the end to ask the question and Aoko's eyes widened dramatically at this piece of information.

"Are you stalking me or something?" she blurted out her thoughts. _This_ was creepy. To learn that a sneaky young man knew what you were doing during the evenings when he was supposed to be miles away doing what thieves did, it was more than eerie. She shivered slightly at the new-found knowledge, still taking it in and Kid's amused demeanour seemed to drop slightly, the smile slipping slowly from his countenance leaving place for a scowl that wasn't directed for her.

"No, I don't stalk people for fun. It's just that you being the Inspector's daughter, I have to put every chance on my side. Anyways, is there someone _truly_ stalking you?" his voice took a more menacing tone by the end, showing the man beneath the Poker Face and the Kid-mask to be disturbed by this more than he should have let on, but fortunately, this went unnoticed by someone who wasn't used to Kid's joviality during the heists.

The subject of conversation taking an ugly turn, the upside-down thief changed topic, catching a glimpse of the clothes he lent by Aoko's feet. He cut the thin translucent cord supporting his weight and managed a back-flip to land on his socks-clad feet while the young girl grabbed a hold of his garments and shoved them in his arms. She then turned around to show him her back as he dressed silently, trying to figure out what annoyed his fiery companion.

When he finally clipped his cape back onto his jacket, Kid tried to go for the silent method: you act, you don't talk. He reached out for the Beryl Emerald sitting just by Aoko's side and held it up to the moon, looking for any red glint inside. Aoko, seeing the movement, shifted to grab his hand, but her own was caught in his. "What are you–!?" She attempted to catch a hold with her other hand, which was caught again, making both her arms useless because her hands were held tightly in one of his.

Meanwhile, the Phantom Thief closed his eyes, letting a small sigh escape his lips, and placed back the Emerald, mumbling under his breath words that sounded like, "Not the right one…" He turned to look at Aoko, who stuck her tongue out in a childish way to show him she didn't like his presence, and he only grinned cheekily, preparing his finale.

"Well, even if this gem is precious, I guess it isn't the right one."

"What do you mean the right one? What _are_ you looking for?"

He let go of her wrists, his hand hiding behind his back to prepare his card-gun, and bowed to distract Aoko a little more. "I'm looking for a priceless gem, but I can always take a consolation prize." He straightened up quickly, brushing past her and soon, an umbrella was pasted in her hands as a rain of glass morsels fell on her, shining brightly when they caught the moonlight.

Hearing the crash of the ceiling, many helicopters flying around the area rushed to project their lights in hope of catching anything white, but all that was seen was an umbrella with Kid's doodle and a bright neon green message written on it.

_Meilleure chance la prochaine fois,_

_Kaito Kid_

_(huge doodle)_

…

It took many hours for Aoko to convince her father that shouting to Heavens and Hell wouldn't deter Kaitou Kid from going back on another heist or to tease either of the Nakamori family members. But what enraged the old inspector the most was the sight of the giant sapphire from last week's heist mounted on a platinum ring on his precious daughter's ring finger. No one knew exactly how or why Kid gave the gem back this way, but Inspector Nakamori was deeply convinced it was either: a) to irk him, b) to show off his talent or c) because he was in love with Aoko or something like that.

And Inspector Nakamori would _never _accept the thought of an elusive thief interested romantically in his daughter. Never, ever, EVER! Even if he saved her from demons, even if he became her guardian angel, even if he became respectable and paid off his crimes by going to prison, there was _no_ way that stupid man was going anywhere near his daughter. As such, he decided that it would be better if Aoko stayed away, faaaaar away from the buildings where the heist were supposed to happen. Heck, as long as she stayed with someone, Nakamori Ginzo was fine with it.

And knowing how her father would react, the young Nakamori girl chose to not say anything about how Kid knew of her after-school activities or even what she studied during the many evenings her only parent was away.

Or tell him about the carnations she was given by the white-clad man as well as the cards that came with them _every single time._

…

_White carnation – a symbol of loveliness and innocence._

_Red carnation – "My heart aches for you" _

_I thank whoever invented flower language._

_P.S: you should close your window at night, there is always a white bird hanging around. And it's not a dove._

_Kaitou Kid_

_(doodle)_

* * *

This... didn't come the way I wanted it at all. The story sticks out in so many ways it's crazy, and the ending is rushed, it doesn't follow the beginning, which makes absolutely no sense, there is no realization of feelings or any confession. What the heck was I thinking...

Ugh.. anyways, hope you'll like it, while school makes me crazy, 've got no time to write anymore, but I'm doing the prequel of this, when Kid said she studied quadratics functions and there's always a white bird hanging around. So yeah... NI NO KUNI: Wrath of the White Witch FTW! YAHOUU (Ughh going back into the Soul Eater/Ghibli wave... :P)

_'Melia, signing out._


End file.
